Nightmare
by omeganaruto
Summary: Dreams are just that, right? Just Dreams? one-shot
It was pitch black, Raven's body was motionless. She couldn't breathe; she was drowning. She was falling deeper and deeper.

Though she could feel no air touching her skin, she could feel the slimy mother-goosebumps crawling up her body – like a spider crawling on her web.

Her body was fighting for air, but every time she opened her mouth, the black muk would force it's way into her body. She could taste every ounce of the vile that entered; she could feel the liquid pouring into her gullet, every bit of it reaching into her internal systems.

She was fading, her mind was fading. The further she was falling; the further she could feel her consciousness getting away from her. Every moment that passed, she could feel herself feeling lighter and lighter.

Raven was losing herself.

00000ooooo00000

"Here you go; tea for two." the older man smiled as he placed the cups in front of the teenagers.

"Thank you, Mad Hatter." Raven Queen smiled weakly as she grabbed the cup, sniffing at the liquid, she let the flavor wash away at her system; rejuvenating what little energy it.

"Thanks, dad." The young hatter smiled and waved at her father.

"No problem, sweetie," he waved back as he turned away, "if you girls need me, just let me know." He said returning his attention to the other customers of his shop.

"So, how is it?" Madeline Hatter turned to her friend. "Do you feel any better?"

Raven took a sip of her tea. "Yeah…" she smiled, placing a hand on the side of her head, "sort of."

These nightmares the young queen has been experiencing; had been happening more and more frequently as of recently; every time she would find herself light-headed and her body heavy throughout the rest of the day. Luckily, the Hatter's tea shop was always open when these nightmares would occur. It was always good to have friends to depend on when you need them the most.

Madeline looked at her friend with a worried expression. "Don't you think you should probably talk to someone about these dreams?" she asked taking notice of the dark circles forming under the young queen's eyes.

"No…" raven sighed and shook her head. "I'm perfectly fine on my own." She smiled weakly.

"Okay…" Madeline frowned in defeat as she took a sip of her tea.

"Actually," Raven piped up a little bit. "What about those 'Narrators' you keep talking about? Perhaps they can give an answer."

"That's a good idea!" Maddie smiled. "Well Mr. Narrator?" she spoke to thin air. "Will you please heed my dear old friend Raven's request?"

The narrator ignored the Hatter's question. With this sentence, The Narrator will also ignore the contradiction in the previous sentence as well as in this one.

"Looks like it's one of THOSE guys," Madeline sighed in defeat. "Sorry Raven," she turned back to her friend.

She didn't know exactly what her friend was talking about, but she hung her head anyways. "Of course," she cupped her face in her hands, "of course it wasn't going to be that easy." She laid her head down on the table; her headache was just getting worse.

"Hey, cheer up Raven," the young hatter smiled, "No matter what happens, know that I will always be there." She said grabbing her friend's hand. "Me, Wocky, and everyone at Ever After High will always be with you."

Raven slowly lifted her head, her eyes meeting the crazy girl's. "Thanks, Maddie," she smiled weakly, tightening her grip. "I appreciate that."

"No problem, Raven." She nodded. "Would you like something to eat?" she smiled.

"Yes…" the young queen nodded.

"Alright," Madeline let go of her friend's hand and stood up from the chair. "Be back in a little bit."

"O-okay…" Raven said weakly, noticing how empty her hand felt. She gently laid her head back down on the table.

The young woman was glad it was the Hatter that she saw that morning. Had it not been for her longest friend; surely, she wouldn't have been able to find the energy to make it all the way to book end.

But wait…

How did Raven make it all the way here? She couldn't recall ever getting out of bed that morning, nor did she remember seeing her roommate – nor anyone else for that matter. She would have had to wake up; met up with Madeline; made it off campus; and then without walking into another soul during this exchange, made it to the Hatter's tea Shoppe. None of this added up.

"Raven…" a weak voice called out.

The young woman raised her head. "Maddie?"

"Raven…" the voice spoke again.

Maddie Hatter was just standing only a few feet away from the young queen, her back turned towards her – her body unmoving.

"Maddie?" Raven sat up in her seat.

Nothing.

"Madeline?"

Still no reply.

"Come on, Maddie." The young girl stood up from the table. "Stop playing around."

The hatter said nothing; she just stood there – motionless.

"This isn't funny, Maddie." Raven said as she walked to her friend. "Stop this."

Still nothing.

"M-Maddie?" Raven cautiously reached out. Touching her shoulder-

The hatter fell like a lead brick.

"Maddie!" the young Queen dropped to her knee, reaching down to her fallen friend. Scooping her up in her arms, she turned her head to look at her. "Maddie, are you okay?"

Nothing.

Madeline's facial expression was very peaceful, almost like she was sleeping. "Come on, Maddie, please wake up!" Raven shouted.

 _Did you see that?_

 _I can't believe it._

 _That was the Mad Hatter's daughter._

 _I thought they were friends?_

 _She didn't do anything to deserve this._

Raven turned to look at the voices. "No, no!" she cried out. "I didn't do it, I swear." She put her one free hand up as if to protect herself from the words. There was blood on her hand.

 _L_ _ook, we caught her red handed._

 _I guess the apple doesn't fall far from the tree._

 _She is just a hypocrite after all_

 _Like mother, like daughter._

"No!" Raven screamed, "I swear, I swear it… I didn't do anything…" the tears were coming.

"-ven…"

The young queen turned to the hatter in her arms, "Maddie!" Raven smiled with joy, tears in her eyes. "Maddie, don't you worry. I'll get you some help. Just please, stay with me." She grabbed her friend's cold pale hand in her bloody one.

"It's okay…" the young hatter smiled weakly, using the last of her strength. "I…for…give you…" Madeline's facial expression softens as her eyes slowly closed – never to open again.

"Maddie!" Raven screamed out, shaking her friend frantically - but nothing the young girl could do, could bring her friend back.

"Maddie...please…" she begged, "please, please," she pleaded. "Please come back to me."

But there was no asking death for favors.

"Raven…"

Tears in her eyes, she turned to the new set of voices. Standing behind her were her friends from school.

"Guys, I…Maddie…she…I…" Raven was heaving, her breathing was erratic - she felt like she could vomit at any moment.

"How… could you…" Ginger spoke up.

Raven stared at the group with wide eyes in disbelief. Some looked at her with fear, some in confusion, there was pity, and there was disdain. It didn't matter how you colored it, they were no longer looking at her the same way they used to.

"No…" Raven shook her head. She couldn't take those eyes again – the same eyes from her childhood.

"She was your friend, Raven." Cerise was in tears. "And you just…"

""No…I didn't…I…" Raven tried to defend herself, but she couldn't find the words. She winced as she felt a sharp pain at her neck.

There was a sword pressed against her.

"After all you said, after all you done." Briar shook her head; she looked down at Maddie's corpse. "She didn't do anything wrong. She didn't deserve this."

"But…I swear…I just…"

"No, just stop." The woman with the sword to the queen's throat spoke. "In the end, you are just like your mother." Darling shut her eyes tightly, shaking her head.

Ever After High's white knight released her grip on the hilt of her blade.

"We won't kill you," Darling said, "but we won't pity you."

As the noise of steel meeting rock echoed through her head, all the response that Raven could muster was a look of fear – as everything she had worked for was broken in an instant.

The distance between the evil queen and the students of ever after high continued to grow.

"No!" Raven called out to her friends, but her cries only fell on deaf ears – actions speaks louder than words. "NO!" she reached out, but the rusty bars wouldn't let her through.

Raven's prison cell kept her confided. "Please!" the young girl cried out in a desperate plea as she reached though the gaps in her cage. "Please, come back!" she called out to her friends – to anyone – to not leave her alone.

No one came back.

Everyone who had ever been touched by Raven's actions had turned their backs on her.

She was alone.

"Please…" Raven fell to her knees, sliding against the rusty metal of her cage. "Just…come back…"

The young woman sobbed quietly.

"Raven…"

The evil queen looked up from her prison cell, eyes all red and puffy, swollen from her tears.

"Raven, don't worry…"

Standing in front of Raven was an elder man, a smile so warm that could he could heat up a cold winter's night. A coat so fluffy, a young child could cuddle up into his lap and take her a nap. Standing in front of Raven was a man, that – in his eyes – she could do no wrong.

"Dad…" the young Queen smiled, trying to fight the tears from coming back.

Don't worry, I'll never leave you." Good King smiled as he reached out his hand.

The bars that had encaged the black haired girl had disappeared, she was free.

"Dad!" Raven reached out, grasping her father's hand.

Raven's eyes went wide as her father's hand turned to dust.

"Daddy?"

"Good bye, my Raven." Good King smiled one final time, as the windless air blew his body to dust.

"Daddy!" Raven cried out as she tried to reach out towards her father, but no matter how far her arms could take her, she could never reach her father as what was left of him was being vacuumed into the void.

Raven's body fell to her hands. "No…" she cried, fear and anxiety started to take over. "No…" she clenched her fist and started to roll herself up in a ball. "No…"

The young girl was once again alone in the darkness. It was as if she was a small child again.

A hollow cackled echoed through the void.

A six year old Raven Queen raised her head off the ground. Her eyes shaking in fear at the sounds as she looked around.

Around the small child was a large, over-looming shadow – like a hungry cat, it threatened to swallow up the little birdie. It seemed like it was smiling at her. She recognized whom the shadow belonged to.

"Mommy?" the young child snapped her head back to turn to the woman that was causing this misfortune.

There was nobody there.

Raven looked back down at the shadow that encircled her, anxiety taking over her as she finally realized it.

The shadow belonged to her.

The edges of the blackness lunged itself unto the small girl. Raven cried as her shadow wrapped around her. The child tried to pull herself out, but like a tar pit, she couldn't dream to break free. She could feel her body starting to sink into the darkness.

It was trying to drown her. Raven tried again to fight back against the muck that threatened to take her life, but to no avail. The tendrils wrapped themselves around her neck. It was trying to choke to death.

Opening her mouth in an attempt to breathe, the black smog forced its way down her throat. Tears started to stream down her eyes, she was suffocating – but she wasn't allowed the pleasure to die a quick death.

The darkness was swallowing up the young girl bit by bit, she tried to fight back, but it kept crawling up her body. Soon the world that she loved so much was taken away.

…

It was pitch black, Raven's body was motionless. She couldn't breathe; she was drowning. She was falling deeper and deeper.

Though she could feel no air touching her skin, she could feel the slimy mother-goosebumps crawling up her body – like a spider crawling on her web.

Her body was fighting for air, but every time she opened her mouth, the black muk would force it's way into her body. She could taste every ounce of the vile that entered; she could feel the liquid pouring into her gullet, every bit of it reaching into her internal systems.

She was fading, her mind was fading. The further she was falling; the further she could feel her consciousness getting away from her. Every moment that passed, she could feel herself feeling lighter and lighter.

Raven was losing herself.

"Raven…"

Something grabbed her wrist.

"Raven…"

Her body was forced upwards through the tar; she was heading towards the surface.

"Raven!"

The young girl's head popped out of the very darkness that had threatened to drown her in her own sorrow. She had made it back onto surface.

Hacking, her body tried to expel the sludge that had forced its way inside. The tar that the woman was free from was nowhere to be seen, it was just her shadow once again.

"Raven?"

Breathing heavily, the young woman turned to see her savior. Wiping the remnants of the tar from her mouth, she smiled happily at blonde that saved her life.

"Apple."

The soon to be Snow White knelt down so that she could be closer to the woman that would soon poison her.

"Raven!" she smiled.

"Apple!" Arms wide, "Thank you!" Raven Queen closed her eyes to wrap her arms around her friend's neck.

 _Thunk_.

Eyes wide, head shaking in fear, the young evil queen turned to look at the ground next to her.

Sprawled out on the ground beside her, the young girl's savior had fallen.

"Apple!" Raven quickly scooped up her friend.

She didn't move.

"Apple, please get up!" she started shaking her frantically.

Her facial expression was peaceful, she wasn't uncomfortable.

"Apple!"

A soft smile on the blonde's face told Raven that she had no regrets.

"Please…"

She was in a breathless sleep.

"Don't leave me."

Apple White was gone; never to return to this story.

Raven Queen was alone; she had lost everything. She was alone in the void - The cold endless void of her soul. The only company she had was the sound of her tears and screams.

00000ooooo00000

Raven Queen had woken up screaming, sweat dripping down from her body; she was drenched. Her breathing was erratic and heavy. Her eyes were frantically searching through the room, as if trying to find something that had been missing - something that could save her. Shaking-ly, she cupped her face with her hands, the muffled sounds of her screams and tears were the only noise she could muster.

Her head jolted back as she felt something touch her shoulder.

"Raven?"

The nightmare that the young Queen had been experiencing had become more and more frequent, every night she would wake up in a total mess – unsure of everything she had just experienced. This night, like many of the past nights, her love would share a bed with her, in hopes that perhaps with her; she could fight off the nightmare. This was a futile effort.

Eyes swollen and puffy, uncontrollable heaving, Raven Queen spoke, "Apple…" she tried her hardest to fight back her emotions.

Without even saying anything, Apple White wrapped her arms around her Queen, resting her head onto the blonde's bosom. "I'm here Raven," she said stroking her roommate's hair.

"A-Apple…" Raven hic-ed. No time to catch her breath, the tears came.

The young girl's body started to hack and cough as her chest burned from the lack of oxygen it desired. She continued to cry into blonde's chest.

"Shh~ shhh~ It's okay." Apple White continued to stroke her love's hair. "It's okay, Apple's here." She shushed in a peaceful, calm tone – as if trying to calm a scared little child.

"Apple," Raven coughed in between sobs, "Please…please don't leave me."

Apple smiled softly. "You never have to worry about that, Raven." She continued stroking. "I'll never leave you."

These nightmares; they were just that, weren't they? They were just bad dreams? They couldn't be a precursor to things that were to come. Were they?


End file.
